Week 4 of 52
Surly Furious
January 21st thru January 27th
Brewer's Description
A tempest on the tongue, or a moment of pure hop bliss? Brewed with a dazzling blend of American hops and Scottish malt, this crimson-hued ale delivers waves of citrus, pine and caramel-toffee. For those who favor flavor, Furious has the hop-fire your taste buds have been screaming for.
Golden Promise malt and four American hop varieties result in a rich malt sweetness infused with bright hop flavor and aroma from beginning to end. It's about 6% alcohol and around 100 IBUs.
Overall Rating based on 49 reviews
3.51 of 5 stars
Brewery Information
Surly Brewing Company
Brooklyn Center, Minnesota
surlybrewing.com
Interesting Fact
Surly's owner Omar Ansari had his first real beer at age 14 at Munich's Hofbrau Haus. Read more
Photography
Courtesy of Erin Reichelt. View more on her flickr set.
Chad says Undetermined
January 24th, 2008
I’ve tried this beer numerous times, and each time I’ve wondered what I’m not getting, that something about Furious is going right over my head. I bought another 4 pack at the beginning of January before I found out that it was the week 4 beer.
The first two beers of four, I had the same reaction; something about the hops is just off. Not bad, but for me, it’s something different. The best I can explain it is “green”. It tastes green.
What other beer has Simcoe, Warrior, or Ahtanum in it? If I could break those apart on a hop-by-hop basis, I’d for sure find the hop that is pushing through. I’ve got an all Amarillo pale right now, so I don’t think it’s that. What do I know, though?
The third out of the pack, I thought, hey, this is pretty good, but then my review beer, beer four, I was back to where I started–with a tongue full of hops, but no greater appreciation for this beloved Minnesota beer. Sad.
Would I drink it again? Of course. I’m not that stupid.
Jan 24th, 2008 at 2:15 pm
Town Hall has an all-Simcoe pale ale on right now. Ahtanum reminds me of Cascade. I’ve never drank it in a single-hop beer. I did an all Warrior pale ale a while back and didn’t care for it. I’d be willing to bet that it’s either the Simcoe (some people don’t like it, but I dig it) or the Warrior that’s throwing you off…
Jan 24th, 2008 at 5:20 pm
Town Hall also did a Warrior IPA in the summer of 2006 that I loved. You can also catch a Warrior IPA from Lefthand still on store shelves. I guess I’m a sucker for that one.
Some day I’ll ask that Haug guy why he picked the hops he did…there’s some method to his madness.
Jan 24th, 2008 at 8:42 pm
I’m not sure how Todd makes up the hop bill for this one, but I’ve made a pale ale that was a 50-50 mix of Amarillo and Simcoe throughout (bittering, flavor and aroma) and it was really good… similar to a Furious Jr. In any case, I bet the addition of Ahtanum and Warrior rounds things out and makes it more complex.